As is well known, Lotus Notes is a groupware type of software application which allows parties to manage and access information across a number of different computing platforms. An application employed in this type of groupware may consist of several individual database designs that work together to perform a specific task. A typical Lotus Notes application may consist of a set of design elements that specify, among other things, the types of documents in the database, as well as the way that the documents can be indexed and viewed.
A database employable in the Notes environment may be resident on a networked server and may be accessible by other networked computers running compatible applications. In configurations where this type of access is provided, a Domino server program may be resident on the networked server. The Domino server program includes the logic to respond to incoming request from another computer and provide the requested information, as well as performing numerous other tasks.
One function which may be provided by a Domino server is the hosting of e-mail services, which includes the accessing and use to email information stored in a database. The networked system described above may be further configured to allow client's computers to access the database through various web based functions, such as Internet web-browsing. The Domino hosting configuration may also be established such that all of the capabilities of a groupware product, such as Lotus Notes, may be employed by one or more entities who do not wish to build or otherwise maintain an internal infrastructure which includes the requisite hardware and software.